Economics

Economic integration, inter- and intra-industry trade: the case of Sweden and the EC

Article Abstract:

An analysis of Sweden's historical data during the 1970s evaluates the effects of European integration in 1990. Removal of national border frontier controls resulted in a decrease of transport costs and an increase in transborder trade. It is indicated that the greatest possible effect of the EC integration would be an increase in intra-industry trade concentrating on research and development intensive industries. For concentrated industries such as oligopolies, integration of the markets would result in a decrease in intra-industry trade. An increase in intra-industry specialization is also implied.

The discipline of imports: the case of Sweden

Article Abstract:

The competition brought by imports to Swedish manufacturing industriestended to constrict their price-cost margins, the metric of an industry's market share, between 1969-1987. This belief was strengthened by an investigation into the impact of a free trade pact between the EC and the European Free Trade Assn and the effect of imports originating from different countries. The results highlight the role of imports from the less developed countries, Asian newly industrialized countries and Japan in disciplining the Swedish economy.

Factor mobility, risk and redistribution in the welfare state

Article Abstract:

Economic integration decreases the costs of factor mobility resulting in efficiency gains and the equalization of net factor returns. The cost of income-redistribution policy is increased and destabilizes a basic role of the welfare state. A costly factor mobility model under uncertainty is developed to demonstrate that greater factor mobility allows factor owners to pool risks. Thus, economic integration may lessen a few of the potential social insurance benefits of redistributive policy.